The Kerr effect is a non-linear optical effect of an isotropic transparent medium that a refractive index thereof changes in proportional to the square of the applied external electric field. A liquid crystal material that exhibits the Kerr effect shows a high-speed electric-field response of several milliseconds or less because the correlation length of the liquid crystal molecules is short. Cholesteric blue phase, smectic blue phase and pseudo-isotropic phase are known as liquid crystal phases that exhibit the Kerr effect.
In a liquid crystal display utilizing the Kerr effect, for example, a common electrode and pixel electrodes are arranged above a substrate. The common electrode is, for example, a continuous film. The pixel electrodes are, for example, combteeth-shaped conductive patterns that face the common electrode with an insulating layer interposed therebetween.
When a voltage is applied between the pixel electrodes and the common electrode, a transverse electric field is generated in the liquid crystal layer to have lines of electric force that are almost perpendicular to both the normal to the substrate and the lengthwise direction of the combtooth portions of the electrode. The transmittance of each pixel changes in response to the intensity of the transverse electric field.